punched up; punching up; punches up
: to give energy or forcefulness to
jokes added to punch up a speech
Examples of punch-up in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
David Szalay, The New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2024
Of the new cast additions, only Ayoade is doing anything funny, but Xeni’s pretentious banter could have used a writerly punch-up from somebody like Richard Ayoade.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Mark Peikert, IndieWire, 23 Dec. 2024
Here, bright purple ribbon secures the wreaths and punches up the bathroom's indigo color scheme for the festive season.
—Abby Wolner, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for punch-up 
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Noun
Toward the end there’s a punch-up, with several players involved.
—David Szalay, The New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2024
Of the new cast additions, only Ayoade is doing anything funny, but Xeni’s pretentious banter could have used a writerly punch-up from somebody like Richard Ayoade.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Verb
Part of that is knowing when to linger on a closeup (go back and rewatch the scene leading up to Joanne and Noah’s first kiss) and when to punch up the comedy by increasing the tempo — before interrupting the rhythm to land a joke.
—Mark Peikert, IndieWire, 23 Dec. 2024
Here, bright purple ribbon secures the wreaths and punches up the bathroom's indigo color scheme for the festive season.
—Abby Wolner, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for punch-up
Dictionary Entries Near punch-up
Cite this Entry
“Punch-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/punch-up. Accessed 9 Jan. 2025.
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